“We’re serving as a bridge to connect people to the horses. The horses are really the therapists,” said PATH (Professional Association for Therapeutic Horsemanship) certified therapeutic riding instructor Diana Kruzshak.   

Ms Kruzshak and Christine Patella, of Therapeutic Recreation Center in Woodbridge and director of the Animal-Assisted Therapy Services at Miles Hill Farm in Guilford, have joined with Barbara Gaydosh of Timber Hill Farm on Huntingtown Road to open Animal-Assisted Therapy Services, an equine therapy program. 

The first session will begin Saturday, September 19, said Ms Kruzshak, with programs geared to people of all ages on the autism spectrum, and for riders who suffer from emotional, physical, and mental issues.

“Equine therapy is actually a centuries-old therapy,” explained Ms Patella, with the earliest physicians recognizing the similarity of the horse’s gait with that of the human walking movement. For patients unable to easily walk, riding a horse strengthens those same muscles that would be exercised if the person could easily move.

Within the last century, the observation that riding increases sensory stimulation on many levels, as well as increasing focus on the part of the rider, has created a new application for equine therapy beyond the physical rehabilitation for which it was originally used.

“It is really in the last ten years that the mental health piece came about,” Ms Patella said, and equine therapy has proved useful in aiding clients with issues such as depression or reactive attachment disorder. When a lack of early parent to child bonding occurs, she said, it is still possible for a child to build a relationship with an animal.

“We can then help transfer that attachment from the animal to people,” said Ms Patella, one of just many situations in which she has seen equine therapy contribute to improvement in a client’s health.

Equine therapy does not always mean riding. Unmounted equine therapy is also beneficial, said Ms Kruzshak. Grooming, talking to the horses, and quiet surroundings have a positive effect on a variety of populations, she said.

Animal-Assisted Therapy Services can also be useful for another “up and coming” group, Ms Patella said. “Veterans find equine therapy helpful,” she said, noting that after World Wars I and II, veterans of the US Calvary received physical therapy through riding.

The elderly are another group who find equine therapy to be a way to make connections and relieve depression.

Sessions at Timber Hill Farm, as at Miles Hill Farm, will begin and end with song, Ms Kruzshak said, thanks to Ms Patella’s input.

“It’s absolutely joyous,” said Ms Patella, who uses music at the Miles Hill Farm.

A music education teacher for 30 years, teaching kindergarten through eighth grade at various schools in Connecticut, Ms Patella made a career change in 2000.

That year, Ms Patella, who has been a lifelong rider, began volunteering as a horse leader at an equine therapy program.

“I was fascinated,” she said, particularly as she had recently had her dachshund certified as a therapy dog. “I was bringing my dog into schools for reading programs, and it was magic. There were such connections made,” she said.

Volunteering as a horse leader, Ms Patella, who holds a master’s in recreational therapy, realized that equine therapy was her calling.

Three years ago, Ms Kruzshak, of Newtown, who had studied learning disabilities in college, began a two-year mentorship under Ms Patella to become a certified equine therapy riding instructor. Raising a family and helping her husband with their business, Evergreen Environments, had distracted her from pursuing a career helping others, she said. While a member of the Second Company Governor’s Horse Guard, she was introduced to Ms Patella. “I finally finished up what I wanted to do,” she said, in achieving certification in equine therapy.

It was sheer luck that brought the two women together with Ms Gaydosh, allowing them to expand Animal-Assisted Therapy Services into Newtown.

“Diana and I were friends for many years,” said Ms Gaydosh, since the time she was a manager at an area farm and Ms Kruzshak “was just a barn rat there.” 

They reconnected as adults, when both found themselves living in Newtown.

“I knew that Diana was wanting to do a therapy program,” Ms Gaydosh said, “and then a barn closed and I was given six therapy horses this spring. It all just came together. The horses needed a home, I knew Diana…”

“It is amazing,” agreed Ms Kruzshak. “Barbara has a farm; I have the program; and Chris is the mentor.”

The horses are trained for therapy, said Ms Patella, meaning that all have been desensitized to any unusual sounds or sights that might occur while riders are on the trail sensory ride, which is part of therapy.

“These horses have to be ‘bomb proof,’ and able to handle it all,” she said. They are very special, in that not all horses have the personality or innate ability to be therapy horses, she added.

Texas, a 17-year-old appaloosa mix, is one of the therapy horses. He is a perfect age for this work, and is strong enough for riders who may have balance issues, or be larger. Joe, another therapy horse at Timber Hill Farm, is calm and easy-going. Four horses and two ponies, said Ms Gaydosh, provide a range of sizes for the various clients that will attend.

Eeyore and Ramona, a therapy donkey and mule at Timber Hill Farm, also provide opportunities for clients to interact with animals.

Ms Gaydosh is pleased to host Animal-Assisted Therapy Services at the farm, she said.

“I’m always looking to help people, and get people interested in horses,” she said.

No more than four clients per hour will be in the indoor riding ring, Ms Kruzshak said, for group sessions. Group sessions will take place Saturday and Sunday mornings, from 10 to 11 am, and again from 11 am to noon. Individual clients will be seen at times throughout the week.

Ms Patella and Ms Kruzshak will assess each client, as well as determine which of the horses will be best for individual clients. Private or group sessions will be determined by the clients’ needs, said Ms Patella.

“We need to think about what is the disability, and what is the goal,” she said. Animal-Assisted Therapy Services also consults with occupational and physical therapists, and other health workers for difficult cases. Admission to the program is rolling, with clients welcomed at any time.

The core staff of six relies on the help of volunteers, Ms Kruzshak said, and as the program gets underway, there will be opportunities for more volunteers to help with the nonprofit organization. All fees go to the operation of the program.

Experienced horse people, at least 16 years of age, are needed to be “horse leaders,” who are in charge of the therapy horse during a session.

“Side walkers” are those volunteers who walk on either side of the rider, interacting with that person, and helping the rider to execute the exercises on horseback. Many volunteers for these positions come from an education or social work background, Ms Patella has observed.

Barn volunteers with some horse experience are needed, as are volunteers for event planning, fundraising, and managerial aspects of Animal-Assisted Therapy Services.

Training is required for all volunteers, and the next orientation is scheduled for Saturday, September 12, from 2 to 4 pm, at the Therapeutic Recreation Center in Woodbridge.  

“We’re looking forward to this,” Ms Kruzshak said, and all are eager to introduce equine therapy to this area.

For more information about the program, or to volunteer, contact info@animalassistedtherapyservices.org, or call Ms Patella at 203-804-5343.